By John Allen
Preferred routes for CRW rides are on scenic, lightly traveled rural roads, but almost every ride must include connecting segments on numbered highways. As CRW's Safety Coordinator, I stress that riding these can be safe, if not necessarily pleasant.
On July 12 Harriet Fell and I led a Wednesday Wheelers ride that did not take the planned route all the way, due to repaving of Peakham Road in Sudbury. Most of the group instead road Route 20 for two miles through South Sudbury, an important two-lane highway with a constant flow of traffic when we rode it, including truck traffic. The narrow shoulder tapers down to nearly nothing in a few places.
We first rode through the South Sudbury commercial district. Crossing and turning traffic are the main challenges here. The main think to remember here is to avoid being hidden to the right of slow or stopped vehicles The shoulder may be tempting in allowing bicyclists to continue moving, but every driveway and street to the right poses the risk of a left-cross or right-hook collision with a vehicle you are passing on its right, or a left cross collision with one it hides from you. The image below, from Google Street View, shows the intersection at Union Avenue, with the potential for both of these crash types.
Passing waiting vehicles on their right would expose a bicyclist to both of these hazards – a couple of my companions did. By jumping the queue, they were putting themselves in conflict with motorists who might turn right and would not have seen them. I am pleased that nobody passed the large box truck which was the first vehicle waiting – and which did turn right.
I merged out from the shoulder, into line with waiting vehicles, and only merged back to the right after crossing the intersection. This may seem counterintuitive, but it is safer – defensive driving.
Once traffic got moving, riding on the shoulder became safer. A motorist overtaking at speed would have to slow before turning right, so I’d have a warning to slow and get behind the vehicle. Overtaking motorists also prevent oncoming vehicles from turning left.
Farther west, approaching Wayside Inn Road, entrances are few and traffic speeds up. This is the type of situation where the risk of the much-feared overtaking collision becomes significant. But situational awareness and strategic lane positioning can prevent these.
Like many CRW members, I use a rear-view mirror. It is a game changer. On a two-laner like route 20 where the shoulder disappears, I’ll ride far enough from the right edge that, again, overtaking motorists’ merging left demonstrates that they have seen me. On a shoulderless multi-lane road, I can control the right-hand lane, and with glances into my mirror, check that every overtaking vehicle has changed lanes to pass. It is always necessary to turn the head when merging left: the mirror shows what is behind, not what is next to me. But the mirror is invaluable to help me time when I can merge safely, and it allows me to be continually aware of what is happening back there. If it is unsafe for a motorist to pass, I’ll hold out my left arm, palm facing the rear. When it is safe, I’ll merge back to the right. The key to safety here is active two-way communication.
Some safety tactics - like merging left in both situations I have described - may seem counterintuitive. But they work by removing uncertainty and eliminating surprises. They increase both safety and confidence.
I am a CyclingSavvy instructor and recommend the free CyclingSavvy Club Rider Essentials course, online. It also covers in-group communication and protocol. I have a workshop scheduled, with two or three options for a Zoom session, as well as on-bike sessions on September 23rd. You may contact me, at johnsallen68@gmail.com or 781 856 4058, for further information.]
